Shocked that companies and mutual funds would invest OPM (Other People's Money) in high-risk investments, the Shocked Investor was originally on a mission to find out if our money ended up in these dubious instruments. This blog now also discusses other financial topics, such as straddles, options, gold, natural gas, agri/food stocks, and the collapse of the US Dollar.

Kenny: “I’ve come here in two days in government with a very strong mandate from the Irish people,” “I would not support any adoption of a common corporation tax rate.”

In other Euro news, Greece also dismissed selling state-owned land to cut debt, another prerequisite from Merketl for reducing the cost of rescue loans.

Elsewhere in Europe, things are not much better. Portugal’s 10-year bond yields reached 7.70% this week, the highest since at least 1997. Prime Minister Jose Socrates announced significant new commitments on deficit reduction that will amount to 0.8% of GDP for this year and "should allow Portugal to bring the deficit down to the EU’s 3 percent limit in 2012".

That according to Olli Rehn, the EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner.

Of course what these officials say publicly and what people believe are two different things.
Maybe everyone should listen to Portuguese Finance Minister Fernando Teixeira Dos Santos: “I hope the European leaders understand the seriousness of the situation we’re facing,”